Construction starts on new technical college at Stansted Airport

Construction starts on new technical college at Stansted Airport

The UK's Minister of State for Climate Change and Industry, Claire Perry, was at London Stansted Airport to see the start of the construction phase of the new on-site technical college and to also launch the Government’s Industrial Strategy.

The £11m Stansted Airport College, designed by Pascall+Watson, is the first on-site college of its kind at any major UK airport and is a joint venture between Harlow College and London Stansted.

When the college opens in time for the 2018 autumn term, it will aim to boost the skills of students in the region and provide a pipeline of future talent for the airport and the 200 plus on-site companies.

The two-storey facility, located on a one acre site on land made available by the airport, has received two separate £3.5 million grants from the South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) Local Growth Fund and Essex County Council, and is also supported by a £300,000 grant by Uttlesford District Council.

The college will welcome more than 500 students each year and offer courses designed to bridge the skills gap in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects as well as specific airport areas such as aircraft and airport engineering, business studies, logistics and supply chain management, asset management, hospitality and customer service.The development of the college is critical to supporting Stansted’s ambitious future growth plans and will provide skilled on-site workers and training opportunities for young people in the regional community surrounding the airport.

Perry, said: “Today we have launched our new, modern Industrial Strategy which aims to help young people develop the skills to do the high-paid, high-skilled jobs of the future.

“The new college here at Stansted is a prime example of our Industrial Strategy in action. Public and private sector working together to improve the skills of young people and delivering a pipeline of talent that will boost the local economy."

While Stansted Airport’s CEO, Brad Miller, said: "This is an exciting day for both the airport and the region and we are delighted that the Minister was able to join us all at London Stansted and witness first-hand the role this initiative will play in delivering the Government’s Industrial Strategy.

“The Stansted Airport College is a great example of the private and public sector working together on behalf of our region to try to deliver part of the solution to a very real problem.“As a rapidly growing and ambitious airport and employer of 12,000 people, it is vital for us to develop and retain the right talent and skills.

“The airport sits within an area of low unemployment so it can often be challenging for companies to fill vacancies across our site.

"The aim of the project is to help address the growing skills gap in engineering, hospitality and customer service across our region, develop talent and provide more opportunities for local people to join us as we play an ever more critical role in providing UK runway capacity over the next decade.”